Book excerpt: Thomas Hardy Was Equally Eminent As A Novelist And A Poet And Thus Holds A Unique Place In English Literature.More Than Seven Decades After His Death, Thomas Hardy Is Still Surprisingly Alive If Uninterrupted Critical Attention Is A Test.The Nineteen Essays Included In The Volume Thirteen On Hardy S Fiction, Five On His Poetry, And One On General Overview Cover A Broad Range Of Critical Perspective On Hardy S Fiction And Poetry, Which Include The Comparative, The Freudian, The Existentialist, The Absurdist, The Psychospatial, The Feminist, The Aesthetic-Artistic, The Historicist, The Dialectical, The Mythical, The Symbolic, Among Others.The Collection Will Be Relevant And Useful To Both Students And Scholars Of English Literature As It Brings Into Focus A Wide Spectrum Of Interesting Sidelights On, And Illuminating Analyses Of The Various Dimensions Of Hardy S Works; Some Of The Papers Are Refreshingly Original And Perceptive In Their Approach To And Treatment Of The Respective Subjects.As A Great Writer Hardy Has Remained Problematic, Demanding That His Readers Wrestle With Him. The Present Volume Claims To Have Joined That Unbroken Wrestle More Than A Century-Old With The Words And Meanings Of Hardy S Works.Contributions From The Eminent Scholars In The Field Have Enhanced The Value Of The Collection.